Reading inscriptions and their limits

How were the scripts read? Scholars worked backwards, from Bengali and Devanagari to older forms, comparing letters. By 1838, James Prinsep could read the Asokan Brahmi. Kharosthi was read with the help of Indo-Greek coins, which carried the kings' names in both Greek and Kharosthi: comparing them gave the sounds.

Most Asokan inscriptions call the king 'devanampiya' (beloved of the gods) and 'piyadassi'. A few name him Asoka, which confirmed that they were the same king.

Reading an inscription carefully means testing its claims. When Asoka says that 'in the past, there were no arrangements for receiving reports at all times', is that true, or royal boasting? And when translators add words in brackets to make the meaning clear, they must do it carefully, without changing what the inscription says.

Inscriptions also have limits:

• letters may be faint or damaged, and the meaning of some words is unclear;
• many inscriptions have not been read, published or translated, and many more have been lost;
• they record mostly grand, unusual events, not everyday life;
• they show the point of view of the person who had them made.

Inscriptions speak for those who carved them.